After 35 years, Millers decide it's the 'right time' to sell the Jazz

Gail Miller, the family matriarch whose clan has owned at least half of the Utah Jazz for the past 35 years, has agreed to sell a majority interest in the franchise to Ryan Smith, the co-founder of Utah-based software company Qualtrics. The 77-year-old Miller, who was a partner with her late husband Larry when they bought a 50 percent stake in the team in 1985, announced the deal at a joint news conference with Smith on Oct. 29.

Miller, chair of the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies, said that the Larry H. Miller Dealerships, Larry H. Miller Real Estate, Prestige Financial Services, Salt Lake Bees and Megaplex Theatres will all remain part of the family enterprise.

The sale includes the majority interest in the Jazz; Vivint Smart Home Arena, where the Jazz plays its home games; the Salt Lake City Stars of the NBA G League; and a management contract for the Class AAA Salt Lake Bees minor league baseball team. Miller said that Smith will buy the Jazz flagship radio stations, KZNS-AM and KZNS-FM, in a separate deal.

Numerous news outlets, including ESPN, reported the purchase price to be $1.66 billion, although details of the deal will not be certain until it is approved by the NBA board of governors — expected to be before the end of the year. The full value of the team will include a “minority interest” Miller said she and her family will retain.

“After much soul-searching, lengthy discussions and extensive evaluations of our long-term goals, my family and I decided this was the right time to pass our responsibility and cherished stewardship of 35 years to Ryan and (Smith’s wife) Ashley, who share our values and are committed to keeping the team in Utah,” Miller said in a statement released by the team.

Smith, 42, is a Utah County native and a longtime Jazz fan. Qualtrics, which German multinational software company SAP bought for $8 billion in January 2019, became the team’s jersey sponsor in the 2017-18 season but opted to put a patch for the cancer research campaign “5 For The Fight” on the jersey instead of the company’s logo.

“I grew up watching the Jazz. This is the team I cheered for,” Smith told ESPN.

Smith dropped out of BYU in his early 20s to start Qualtrics with his dad, Scott (then a marketing professor at BYU), as well as his brother Jared and former college roommate Stuart Orgill. The bootstrapped company grew out of the family’s basement in Provo and it now employs over 3,000 people with more than two dozen offices in nine countries.

Upon closing of the transaction, Smith will become the NBA governor of the Utah Jazz and its affiliates and he will have final decision-making authority for all business and basketball operations related to the team and other assets included in this transaction, the team statement said. Steve Starks, in addition to his role as chief executive officer for the LHM Group, will be an advisor.

“The Miller family has had an unbelievable impact on countless people through the Utah Jazz and the other organizations they run,” said Smith. “We all owe a great debt to the Miller family for the amazing stewardship they have had over this asset for the past 35 years. My wife and I are absolutely humbled and excited about the opportunity to take the team forward far into the future — especially with the greatest fans in the NBA. The Utah Jazz, the state of Utah and its capital city are the beneficiaries of the Millers’ tremendous love, generosity and investment. We look forward to building upon their lifelong work.”

Larry Miller, who built a highly successful car dealership empire from the ground up, purchased the first 50 percent stake for $8 million in 1985 and the remaining 50 percent of the Jazz for $14 million in 1986, when rumors raised fears that the team would relocate to Miami or Minneapolis. Led by the late coach Jerry Sloan and the legendary star duo of Karl Malone and John Stockton, Utah quickly established itself under Miller’s stewardship as one of the league’s most solid franchises. The team won nine division titles and made two trips to the NBA finals, in 1996-97 and 1997-98, losing both times to Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls. The Jazz continue to be regarded as one of the league’s well-run franchises, led by team president Dennis Lindsey and coach Quin Snyder.